WASHINGTON, D.C.: Labor rights activist Dolores Huerta said that she, along with other women and girls, was sexually abused by César Chávez, the well-known Latino leader who helped highlight the struggles of farmworkers while leading the United Farm Workers.

In a statement released on March 18, Huerta said she refused to talk about her experience for 60 years out of concern for the farmworker movement.

Chávez, who was born in Yuma, Arizona, had helped farmworkers get better pay and safer working conditions, and many Democratic leaders in the U.S. admired him.

The allegations of sexual misconduct against Chávez, who died more than three decades ago, drew immediate condemnation, and there were calls to alter memorials that honored him.

Dolores Huerta said she had two sexual encounters with him—one where she felt pressured and manipulated, and another where she said she was forced. She explained that she kept this secret for years because her main focus was building the farmworker movement. She believed creating a union was the only way to protect workers' rights and did not want anything to weaken that effort.

Huerta, who is also a well-known labor leader, worked with Chávez in 1962 to start the National Farm Workers Association, which later became the United Farm Workers. Many people compared Chávez and Huerta to Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks because of their work for civil rights and equality.

The New York Times reported on March 18 that Chávez had groomed and abused young girls in the movement. Huerta told the newspaper that she was also a victim in her 30s. She later said both encounters led to pregnancies, which she kept secret, and other families raised the children. She added that no one knew the full truth until recently.

Huerta said she was not aware that Chávez had harmed other women. She condemned what he did but stressed that the farmworker movement is bigger than one person. She said his actions do not erase the lasting improvements made for farmworkers and that people should continue supporting the community.

Many places in the Southwest, such as streets, schools, and parks, are named after Chávez. California was the first to officially celebrate his birthday, and in 2014, then-President Barack Obama declared March 31 as National César Chavez Day.

Reactions came quickly from leaders in both political parties. Some Chávez-related events in places like San Francisco, Texas, and Arizona were canceled at the request of the César Chávez Foundation.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott said the state will no longer observe César Chavez Day and will consider removing it completely.

California Governor Gavin Newsom said he is still thinking about the news and did not commit to changing the holiday, noting that the movement is about labor and social justice, not just one person.

In Arizona, Governor Katie Hobbs chose not to recognize March 31 as César Chavez Day this year. In Phoenix, city leaders will vote on whether to rename the holiday and places named after Chávez to "Farmworkers Day."

In Albuquerque, Mayor Tim Keller ordered a review of how Chávez is honored. U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján said Chávez's name should be removed from public places and honors.